I have a solenoid plunger that I'd like to drive from an FPGA. There will be a voltage spike when I stop driving the solenoid and would rather not damage the board. I've been given vague advice about creating a circuit to 'drive' the solenoid and protect the board. Could anyone provide further insights about this?

I have a solenoid plunger that I'd like to drive from an FPGA. There will be a voltage spike when I stop driving the solenoid and would rather not damage the board. I've been given vague advice about creating a circuit to 'drive' the solenoid and protect the board. Could anyone provide further insights about this?

Originally posted by Papabravo@Apr 22 2006, 10:26 AMThe following diagram may be helpful
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[post=16395]Quoted post[/post]​

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You could also use a DS2003 transistor array or even just a transistor and a few resistors. There are plenty of circuits out there for doing this. The benefits of a DS2003 is there are 7 transistors in a small package so if you want to drive more than one it is there waiting for you.